The Repairman
by Razell
Summary: OC Raggedy-Man betrays The Corps.
1. Chapter 1

The Betrayal

"I tell you, he's _trying_ to get us killed!"

Low ignored his partner's protestations. It was not that he dismissed Raggedy-Man's assertion but that he was wise enough not to give voice to it.

"If we run into Superman," he rasped, "Superman-Prime will take care of him." Truth be told, he could not understand why Sinestro wanted to attack Earth, again. And he had manipulated The Corps for his own ends, to force The Green Lanterns to change their ways and kill. To kill _them_. Raggedy-Man's paranoia, in this case, at least, was not unfounded.

"It's not Superman I'm afraid of." His partner replied grimly. "It's our fearless leader."

The city was in chaos. From the sounds of it, WWIII had broke out. Slobo cursed loudly. He couldn't see a fraggin' thing, and the world was fallin' down around his ears. His body was falling apart, his runt DNA givin' out. And he was separated from his friends. Just fraggin' great.

A dim yellow shape appeared just within his limited field of vision, and laughed.

It wasn't a friendly laugh.

Raggedy-Man quickly found himself separated from Low. The fighting was intense. Earth had many super-beings and all of them seemed to have come out to fight The Sinestro Corps. He was convinced now. It was all a plot. Sinestro was leading them all to their deaths. At least he'd had the decency to allow poor Kryb to remain on Qward and heal. He had only two real allies, and Kryb was one of them. She'd suffered enough because of Green Lantern stupidity and Black Lantern horror. Raggedy-Man's slender, yellow-swathed form dodged in, out and between the fighting. He wasn't looking for a fight. After seeing action against The Black Lantern Corps, he was sick of it all.

"You fraggin' chicken! Stand still and fight me like a man!" Slobo shouted, as the yellow figure vanished, only to kick him to the ground from behind. He cursed and growled and leapt back to his feet, assuming a fighting stance. "Do you honestly think you have a chance?" The voice mocked, "A mighty Czarnian. Ha! A pitiful, blind _cripple_! Maybe if you _beg_ for mercy I'll let you live. . ." Slobo screamed in rage and began swinging blindly. The freak was toyin' with him, like a cat with a mouse. If he'd stick to the ground, Slobo would tear him a new one, but he didn't have the guts to face him. He knew that he was royally screwed, but was still hoping to land just one good shot. . .

Raggedy-Man watched as panicked crowds fled for their lives. Cars burned, people were stampeding like cattle.

If Sinestro was right, and rule by fear brought order, why did he see only chaos, destruction and madness?

He saw that the infamous Batman was pounding Maash's three faces into the ground. Raggedy-Man made no attempt to help him/them. Maash was a sadistic freak and deserved what he/they got.

Besides, he was an inveterate coward.

He stopped short over a blind alley half-concealed by fallen rubble. Something had caught his eye. _Romat-Ru_. He hated the Xudrian with a passion, but he was a powerful and influential member of The Corps. He was the most wanted serial killer in the galaxy, having murdered thousands of children on his home world. He was a disgusting blemish on the universe.

His first glance at the Xudrian's opponent was a powerful shock.

He had only seen the despicable creature known as Lobo once, but it was enough for him to recognize a Czarnian when he saw one. In keeping with Romat-Ru's cowardice his opponent was only a boy. But there was something else. The way the boy moved. His misdirected blows. _Dear God_. . .

He was _blind_.

Something snapped inside of him.

Slobo heard an inarticulate cry of rage, a second of utter shock and terror. A flash of yellow light and the warmth of blood on his face, the sound of three objects, two of them bodies, crashing to the asphalt.

Somebody just got fragged.

He saw it coming. Raggedy-Man wanted him to see it coming. Romat-Ru saw his death just before the energy sword sliced his head from his shoulders. It was far better than he deserved. The elation was short-lived. Raggedy-Man's Yellow Power Ring vanished before the Xudrian's corpse could hit the ground, and he himself crashed painfully into the rubble.

"Who's there?" The boy asked, as the stunned man struggled to his knees. "What's goin' on?"

Before he could respond, shouts came from the street as several teenagers rushed into the alley. The boy's friends. They'd been just about to rescue him when he made his traitorous strike.

Raggedy-Man laughed, but there was no humor behind it. He'd just needlessly thrown away his life. . .

"Who's there?" The boy repeated to a dark-skinned girl who had rushed to his side.

"A dead guy with no head and a masked guy dressed like a yellow mummy." She replied.

One of the boys landed before the weakened Corpsman. He easily recognized the youth by costume.

_Superboy_.

Superboy was confused as hell. He had seen the lethal strike, knew that this being had saved his friend's life. But he had been using a Yellow Power Ring. He was a member of The Sinestro Corps. Why would he kill one of his own?

"Who are you? Are you a friend or an enemy?"

The voice behind the featureless mask sounded infinitely tired. "I am a fool and a dead man."

Once Sinestro learned what he had done, his death would be slow and horrible. If he had killed a lesser member of The Corps, it might be forgiven, even applauded. But Romat-Ru was a pillar of the Corps. His death would not go unavenged.

But The Green Lanterns knew that he had been present at the death of their teammate, the guardian of Sector 3333. He would likely face a death sentence. Though he had not actually killed the man, he had been a party to it. Still, Sinestro's punishment would be far worse than any means of death The Green Lanterns handed out.

"Why? Why did you do that?" The Czarnian was angry, frustrated by his own weakness. His pride was wounded. It was bad enough to have his friends feeling sorry for him, but his _enemies_! It was humiliating. He shouted in Raggedy-Man's general direction, "I don't need your pity! I can take care of myself!"

He didn't know what to say. He didn't blame the boy or think him ungrateful, it was frustration over his limitations, not truly directed toward him.

"Romat-Ru deserved to die." He replied finally.

Raggedy-Man saw dozens of yellow streaks racing towards the heavens. The Sinestro Corps was in full retreat. And he was trapped here.

Everyone gaped in shock as a horrific, yellow and black-clad form appeared. The creature was blue, over six feet tall, muscular, with black taloned hands and a worm-like neck ending in a moist, circular, tooth-filled maw. Tiny black eyes ringed that horrible orifice. A raspy voice emerged. "_By The Black Eggs of Azathoth_! What the hell have you done?"

Low couldn't believe it. Romat-Ru was dead, and Raggedy-Man was drenched in his blood. From the damage, it was obvious what had happened. His partner had murdered a fellow Corpsman. Though he had no love for Romat-Ru, he _had_ been a valuable member of The Corps. Low had never suspected his partner capable of such an act. He'd openly hated Romat-Ru for his crimes. Some species had a strange and intense psychological desire to protect the young of any race and punish those who would harm them.

Low's race was not one of those species.

He didn't know what to do. His friend had betrayed The Corps. The youths around him were extremely dangerous, Superboy, Robin, several others he didn't recognize, and a _Czarnian_, of all things. Sinestro had ordered a full retreat. It was too great a risk to try to fight them.

"Low." The fallen Corpsman turned to face his partner, "Escape while you still can," Raggedy-Man's voice was high and shaky, "It's too late for me." He paused. "I'm sorry I disappointed you."

The vermicular horror fled into the sky without a word.

Moments later, The Green Lanterns arrived to take the fallen Corpsman into custody.

Weakened by the loss of his Power Ring, facing certain death at the hands of his former allies, the only thing Raggedy-Man could do was surrender peacefully.

To be continued. . .

The timeline for this story is totally different from that of canon. Everything is out of order and, as Slobo would say, all fragged up. That's why it's called _fan-fiction._

Low killed Penn Maricc, Lantern of Sector 3333, in my short story 'Low'.


	2. Chapter 2

Repairman

"I swear, if he asks me to take my clothes off, I'll frag 'im!"

"He's a doctor," Empress said softly, "And an expert in cloning." To tell the truth, she was worried as well. This 'Raggedy-Man' was said to be a genius in the field of cloning, but he was also an ex-member of The Sinestro Corps and a raving lunatic. Still, if he could help Slobo. . . They had to take the risk.

The situation was such that it couldn't get much worse, anyway.

Slobo bumped into the corner, and cursed in frustration. How could he not see a _wall_? "This guy fragged one of his own team. How can we trust him?" True, he had probably saved his life by killing that freak who'd been attacking him, but they'd been on the same side.

Slobo and his teammates had been fully briefed on The Raggedy-Man. He wasn't particularly dangerous, The Green Lanterns had assured them. But he had been a member of The Sinestro Corps, and was paranoid to the point of psychosis. His ex-partner was a giant, blood-sucking worm named Low.

_Low_. It had a nice ring to it. Why hadn't he thought of that?

Raggedy-Man had seen Lobo once. He had found him incredibly ugly and vicious. His youthful clone, however, was rather handsome and inoffensive. He had seen the boy before, just before his capture, but those had been brief glances. He was thin, dressed in ragged leather and a mesh shirt over a bare, bony chest. He was rather pale gray and possessed those tell-tale mask-like markings over his yellow eyes and light stubble on his chin.

He had, of course, thoroughly studied the boy's medical files as well as what information was available on Oa and Earth about Czarnian biology. Still, studying dry charts was not the same as working with a living patient. He could see immediately that the boy was in bad shape. _Clonal degeneration_. He'd run across this dozens of times in his early experiments with his own clones. He had been warned not to display any obvious sympathy or pity. The boy was proud. He had bravely held his own against Romar-Tu, until Raggedy-Man sliced his fellow Yellow Lantern's head from his shoulders. He had been waiting for the opportunity to kill the child-murderer for a long time, but watching him toying with a blind boy had been the last straw. He'd had no choice, after that. His ring was gone, leaving him helpless. Sinestro would kill him if he ever got his hands on him again, but, of course, Sinestro had been plotting against him from day one. So he had surrendered rather than face Sinestro's wrath.

Slobo could see a tall yellow pole beside a big grey lump he assumed was a bed. Two green figures stood on either side of the yellow pole. "Welcome." The yellow pole moved, "I am called Raggedy-Man."

"Slobo. Top Fraggin' Teen. And if you even _look_ at me funny I'll rip your heart out."

_Charming_. Still, he understood that the boy was incredibly frustrated over his physical limitations and deteriorating health.

"And I'm Empress." The girl looked understandably suspicious, and there was a glint of threat in her eyes. She truly _cared_ about him. _What a blessing it must be_, He thought, _to have friends!_

"A pleasure." He gave a slight bow.

"Please, lay down." The voice was thin and muffled, yet refined. There were things Slobo didn't need eyes to see.

He scented fear on the creature, and smiled.

Slobo shook off his guide and walked to the bed. He didn't bother to ask if the doc wanted him to take off his boots. The yellow form swiftly appeared at the bedside and began odd movements over him. Must be usin' some kind of scanner like on _Star Trek_.

It was worse than he'd thought. It appeared that only Czarnian biology and stubborn pride was keeping him on his feet. Still, it was not hopeless. Though his nervous system was in poor shape, most of the major organs were intact and fully functional. The technology existed here to save him, but the Green Lanterns obviously didn't know how to use it. The boy would have to be put in stasis to survive long enough for the technical issues to be resolved. The proper machines built.

"I believe we can help you. I may have to put you into a regenerative tank for some time. You will be asleep, of course."

"Why're you helpin' me?"

Raggedy-Man paused for a moment, "I am in this for purely selfish reasons. Several of them, actually. First: This will greatly improve my status as a prisoner of war. Second: The opportunity to work with Czarnian DNA was an offer I could not refuse. Do you realize how _rare_ Czarnian genetic material is?"

"Not _this_. Before, when you _fragged_ your own _teammate_."

He had anticipated that question, "Romar-Tu murdered thousands of children on his home world. I have waited for some time for the opportunity to stop him from killing again, and you distracted him long enough for me to do so."

Slobo frowned slightly. He didn't believe that was the _only_ reason, but it left a pretty obvious question in his head, "Yeah, that's great. But how many of the _other_ yellow guys have offed kids?"

Though he couldn't see him, Slobo knew _that_ had hit home. There was a swift gasp, then a short silence.

Raggedy-Man looked at his left hand. The Yellow Ring had deserted him, and they had confiscated his finger blades at his capture. If Sinestro's goals were noble, why would he employ, _favor_, even, a monster like Romat-Ru? What had he really been fighting for?

"L-let us get down to the 'brass tacks' of the situation," Raggedy-Man quickly changed the subject. It disturbed him terribly. "I take it that you are aware of your current medical state?"

"I'm blind an' my frickin' body's fallin' ta pieces." He replied with a hint of sarcasm.

"Basically, yes." He did not want to lie to the youth. "Your cells are unstable, but if we can find the proper catalyst, that is, something to cause your cells to stop falling apart, we can save you and hopefully reverse the process. I have been given several locks of hair from your. . . _Predecessor_. The genetic material taken from his hair should be enough to stabilize your condition."

"Should. Hope. . ." Hollow words.

"Nothing in this universe is certain, my young friend." The condescension was unintentional.

"Nothin' but death."

In some cases even that was not certain. Since the so-called _Blackest Night_, and the horrible zombies. . . He shuddered. He had never seen anything so terrible as the rotting dead fighting the living. Low thought he had gone insane from the fear and horror. Perhaps he was right. The Green Lanterns certainly seemed to agree.

Slobo wasn't the only one under medical care.

The young Czarnian wondered what kind of man he was talking to. He had to be evil or crazy, or both, to be chosen for a Yellow Ring. From his actions and physical description, Slobo was leaning toward crazy. Despite that, he didn't believe that the man meant him any harm. He had already saved his life once, killing one of his own teammates in the process.

"Are we done yet?"

"I'm afraid not. Your body won't last until we can construct the proper equipment and extract the genetic catalyst. We will have to put you in stasis. With your consent, of course."

"Sleep or die. I think I'll choose sleep. How long?"

"A few weeks. Faster, if I can find _competent_ help."

"Are you saying our people aren't competent?" A new voice spoke. Probably one of the guards.

"I am merely pointing out that your medical staff is untrained in the intricacies, the _art_ of cloning." The condescension was intentional, this time. One of the few joys he had left was displaying his mental superiority over his captors. He paused thoughtfully, "Perhaps you could contact that Coluan genius, what is his name? Brainiac 5, I believe. Perhaps you could contact him and elicit his help in saving this young man's life."

"This 'young man' would like to get up now." Slobo grumbled.

"Of course."

He slid off the bed and walked toward the blobby figure he assumed was Empress.

Later:

Slobo shook off the hand trying to help him into the stasis tube. "I don' need help." He said softly as he lay onto the padded bedding. He felt weak as a kitten, but he wasn't going to let anyone know that. He was sure that, if this didn't work, he wouldn't last a week. But a slim chance was better than none.

Raggedy-Man looked around at the odd assortment of young heroes who'd come to give their friend moral support. He felt certain than more that one life was on the line. "Just make yourself comfortable," He said softly, "The gas will have a scent of lavender and will take about two minutes to take effect. You may feel a falling sensation at first, that's perfectly natural." He paused, "I'm about to seal the tube. Is there anything you want to say to your friends?" "Yeah." He laughed weakly, " If this guy kills me, frag 'im for me." "I assure you, I will do everything in my power to save you." "I know. Jus' pullin' yer chain. . . Well, see you guys later. . . I hope. . ."

Yellow eyes closed and breathing slowed until it was almost imperceptible. He was safely in stasis.

Later:

Querl Dox found that The Raggedy-Man was a true genius in several fields, even though his methods were unorthodox and hampered by his incredible paranoia. He would allow no one to see even a hair of his head. He slept sitting up in a corner. No one even knew his actual name. He was used to living either alone or with a psychotic, utterly inhuman bipedal leech. He thus had an understandable difficulty interacting with others. The only 'friends' he had in the universe were said leech and a horrific, baby-snatching hag, and, with his betrayal of The Sinestro Corps, he had almost certainly lost those relationships. He had extended a level of trust toward Brainiac 5, however, respecting him as both fellow scientist and an ally in the struggle to save Slobo's life. He was sarcastic and aloof with the Green Lanterns, treating them more like dim-witted servants than captors.

He seemed genuinely concerned with his patient's health and safety. For a member of The Sinestro Corps, he seemed singularly. . . _Honorable_. Of course, simply caring about someone else did not mean that Raggedy-Man was a 'good' person. It merely indicated that he had the capacity for compassion. Most beings, even utterly 'evil' ones, had a code of honor. A crime they would not commit. A line they would not cross. Some never went back on their word, even if it meant personal loss or outright defeat. Others would only prey upon the wealthy or fellow criminals. The most common form of 'honor' among villains was that one would never intentionally harm a child or allow them to come to harm.

Wasn't that what had caused him to betray the Sinestro Corps in the first place? To prevent children from being harmed by Romat-Ru? Slobo would likely find being called a 'child' humiliating and offensive. 'Adolescent', perhaps? He didn't want to test his luck by trying to find out.

Regardless, after hearing of the boy's plight, the man had actually _volunteered_ his services to help save his life. He claimed his reasons were purely selfish. In fact, it _was_ an excellent opportunity to advance scientific knowledge of the near-extinct Czarnian race. And he was escaping a possible death sentence for his involvement in the death of a Green Lantern named Penn Maricc. Still, Querl doubted that there were no altruistic motivations in his actions.

He walked into the medical chamber to find Raggedy-Man already there. As usual.

Raggedy-Man put a hand on the tank in which the young Czarnian slept. Emotional considerations aside, the boy was fascinating. Spontaneously generated from a single drop of blood. _Bio-fission_. Born fully formed and self-aware. It was tragic that his progenitor had slaughtered his entire species. He wondered how Lobo had wiped out a species that could regenerate from a single drop of blood. He had heard rumors of a science experiment gone awry, but Lobo did not strike him as a scientist of any kind.

Perhaps that was why the experiment went wrong.

"It's remarkable." Raggedy-Man said softly, "He bears little resemblance to his genetic 'father' in a psychological sense. Despite retaining certain mannerisms and a penchant for excessive profanity, he is a noble creature, not a vicious psychopath." He turned to Querl, "Of course, we know that a 'laboratory' clone is not doomed to become its source. But from my understanding the clones of Lobo each possessed his memories and personality. But not this one." He turned and looked back at the boy's face, "Why?"

"Perhaps he received only partial memories. He is, by his own admission, the 'runt' of the clones."

"Perhaps. . ."

"And, even if he is a genetic replica of Lobo, he has his own soul. He is a separate being, much as a child is separate from it's mother."

Raggedy-Man laughed, it was the first time Querl had heard him laugh. "Lobo a _mother_!"

Querl joined in, the thought of a 'motherly' Lobo was hilarious.

"He's a _mother_, alright, but it's usually followed by an obscenity."

After a few moments, the laughter died down, and the scientists regained their composure.

"I'm curious," Querl Dox said, "if you are released, which seems likely, what do you intend to do?"

"I don't know. I have no desire to wear a Power Ring of _any_ color." He paused thoughtfully, "Bedovian, The Sinestro Corps sniper, is probably keeping an eye out for me. He can literally see and accurately fire across _lightyears_. I don't have many options or much hope."

"I'm sure you could be protected somehow. If this Bedovian is so accurate and powerful, he would have decimated our host's ranks by now."

'I believe Sinestro doesn't want to destroy The Green Lanterns, he simply wants to _corrupt_ them."

Dox couldn't argue with that.

"I have been thinking." Querl Dox approached the tank. "Perhaps you should pursue a career in medicine. You are a very efficient and skilled physician. And, from your descriptions of your friend, Low, you have a keen grasp of xenobiology."

Raggedy-Man frowned beneath his mask. _Low_. That was the one of the few things he felt bad about. Their friendship would have been destroyed by his betrayal. Low would almost certainly kill his former partner on sight, given the chance. Low was the only person to whom he had willingly shown his true face since his parents died. He was forced to reveal his face to both Sinestro and the Green Lantern who processed prisoners, but he had been open with Low. Now that was over. His mask was his shield against a universe that was bent on destroying him. On strange impulse, he reached up and slowly removed his mask and the bandages about his head.

Querl Dox was stunned. He had never seen such a strikingly handsome man in his life. His skin was a pale gold, his hair shining copper. His purple eyes glittered like jewels. There was a look of haunted weariness on his face.

Raggedy-Man couldn't remember the last time he'd seen his own face. He held the mask in his hands, gazing at the featureless shield he had hidden behind almost his entire life. He set it on a nearby instrument tray.

It had served its purpose. It could no longer protect him. It never had. It had all been an illusion.

"Only three people in the universe know my real name. Myself, Low and Kryb. Not even Sinestro. I lied to him. I knew he couldn't be trusted." He smiled thinly, "My name is Tevaxis VI, King of Chrisphatia." For the first time in his adult life, he actually felt free.

They let the Green Lanterns search frantically for two hours before revealing that Raggedy-Man had _not_ escaped.

Later :

Slobo slowly regained consciousness. He felt strong, healthy. He was afraid to open his eyes.

Was he still blind?

"He's awake." He recognized the voice as The Raggedy-Man, but it was not muffled. He wasn't wearing his mask.

Since they knew he was awake, he had no excuse for keeping his eyes closed.

As he opened his yellow eyes a soft light filtered in. It took a moment for his eyes to focus. He could see! He tried to sit up but was hit by a sudden vertigo. A strange man with gold skin, purple eyes and copper hair caught him, held him up as his body adjusted. "It's all right," The man said softly. That voice. So, _he_ was Raggedy-Man, "Give it a moment. You have been asleep for a month and a half. . ."

Slobo's friends were gathered around the bed. He looked about in awe, he had never thought he'd see them again. "Man. You guys look friggin' terrible." Everyone pressed in on him, hugging and shouting as he tried to get up.

After the clamor had died down, Slobo turned his attention toward his 'doctors'. The boy stood straight and stuck out his thin chest, "I guess I owe ya' one." He said, trying for stoic bravado and only slightly falling short.

"Don't mention it." Querl Dox shook his hand. "Anything for a friend."

Raggedy-Man didn't know what to say. He wasn't a 'people person'. "You are certainly welcome." He smiled, revealing perfect teeth, and firmly shook his patient's hand.

Space Sector 3308

A yellow swathed hand pulled a bottle from the rack. Low watched in fascination as the creature sat in Raggedy-Man's chair, poured himself a small glass and began to drink. He looked up at Low with purple eyes. "Is something wrong, my friend?" "It's just. . ." "Don't worry, you will get used to me after a time." Raggedy-Man's clone was not cursed with his paranoia, though he kept the mask and yellow swathings to instill a sense of mystery about himself. He even had some of his old partner's mannerisms. He wondered how Raggedy-Man would react when he learned that his clone was still fighting for Sinestro's Might.

He had introduced cloning to the Corps, after all.

The End.


End file.
